I am not looking for legal advice, this is purely hypothetical.
Suppose that I have an adult, non-relative roommate, Bruce, and that we share an internet connection (two separate computers behind a router). I pay for the internet service, so the bill is in my name. Further suppose that Bruce downloads a movie illegally via P2P and the MPAA catches him doing it (recording the IP address in the process). Now, the MPAA sends a letter to my ISP to obtain the name of the John Doe at my IP address (maybe they need a subpoena for this…if so, suppose they get it). Since I am the one who pays the ISP, the MPAA gets my name. The MPAA then sends me a letter saying, “You infringed our copyright. Pay us $1500 or go to court and risk having to pay $150,000.”
Did I commit copyright infringement? My understanding is that I am innocent since I did not actually download the movie. How would the MPAA prove whether Bruce or I committed the copyright infringement? Is “I didn’t do it; Bruce did” a valid defense if the MPAA takes me to trial?
Would it make a difference whether Bruce’s computer was password-protected? What if we shared a single computer with a single user account to which we both had the password?
Since the bill is in your name, read your service provider’s TOS. Chance’s are the TOS says you are responsible for any and all content downloaded from the connection, regardless of who does the actual downloading.
I’ve seen recent articles where the owners of the account are being held responsible. It’s in flux and the law interpretation is all over the place right now.
Here is one example of unsecured network owners being fined if illegal downloads happen.
If you went to trial, it would be incumbent upon the MPAA to prove that you were the person who downloaded the movie. Their burden of proof (assuming you are in the U.S., of course) would be preponderance of the evidence. That means that, on the basis of the evidence presented, it is more likely than not that you were the person who downloaded the movie.
Evidence that would help you win your court case are things like showing a listing of your hard drive sans movie, testimony from your roommate that he did it, an explanation of your internet sharing, character witnesses, your employment at the RIAA, etc. etc. If the judge believes the evidence leans away from you having done it, you’re good. The trick, like all trials, is that people, even judges, are unpredictable.
Also note that no one can make you pay unless you get a trial. You obviously didn’t commit infringement in your example, and the MPAA has no power to compel you to pay anything sans a court order. Even if you clearly infringed, they still have to prove it in court.
Let’s say the TOS does say this. How does a contract between the ISP and the subscriber transfer intent in a matter between the RIAA/MPAA/BSA/etc and the infringer of someone’s copyright?
This is inaccurate; the service provider has no authority to require you to be liable to a third party. They can ask you to indemnify them, but not to be responsible to the MPAA.
In the United States, there is no interpretation or flux involved. For civil liability it would require a statute expressly establishing a presumption of liability, and a fine-type thing as in the German law, while possibly evidence of civil liability, would be a criminal matter and the MPAA would not be involved (other than politically:rolleyes:).
The constitution will not allow the OP to be liable for infringement unless it is proven that he or she infringed.
How is that? It seems to me that the IP address narrows it down to two people (assuming that only Bruce and I have access to my connection), but not down to only me.